How to Make Iced TeaHot Brew Method

How to Make Iced Tea

Easy Breezy Iced Tea

Making iced tea at home is a breeze! We recommend one of two ways to brew iced tea: traditional hot brew method or eco-friendly cold brew method.

If you plan on sweetening your iced tea, we recommend using the hot brew method.

Follow this step by step guide to make iced tea using the traditional hot brew method.

Measure Your Loose Tea

Step One: Start by measuring your loose leaf tea. Generally, you should measure 1 teaspoon loose leaf tea per cup iced tea. However, fluffier blends such as white teas and chamomile may require as much as one tablespoon or more, while denser teas such as gunpowder may require less than one teaspoon.

Heat Your Water to Temperature

Step Two: Next, heat your water to the temperature suggested below. Use fresh water whenever possible - water that has been sitting in your kettle overnight may impart a flat or stale taste to your tea. Be careful not to boil your water for too long. Over boiled water can sometimes impart an unwanted taste.

Sweeten & Chill Your Tea

Step Four: If you wish to sweeten your tea, dissolve sugar or honey in the hot brew.

Chill! If you plan on drinking your iced tea immediately, pour the double-strength infusion directly over an equal amount of ice.

To drink later, dilute your double strength infusion with an equal amount of room temperature water (1/2 cup (4 oz) room temperature water for every final cup iced tea). Let stand at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. Then place in your refrigerator. This method allows the tea to cool gradually, which helps avoid clouding caused by chilling most teas too rapidly.

Note: It is OK if your iced tea clouds! There are many reasons this can occur; a clouded tea can sometimes signify a higher quality tea filled with desirable tea solids, or one that has been cooled too quickly. Regardless, a clouded iced tea is certainly not a bad iced tea! Teas from the Nilgiri region of India seem to resist clouding better than other tea varieties.